The Strangers
by Ninjazz
Summary: Leon's poor judgment towards his car's fuel range has left him and Claire stranded in the woods at night. A new terror shows its face as the survival heroes are thrown into the world of Sci-Fi.
1. A Night Out

**A Night Out**

Leon looked up at the stars, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. He was sitting at the wheel of his convertible, finding it impossible to keep his attention on the sky. He tried mentally linking the stars together to form shapes, but his thoughts drifted to the song on the radio, then the noises in the woods where he was parked, and finally to Claire in the passenger seat. He turned his head and looked at her, grinning. She was sitting upright, her head leaned against the seat, and she was sound asleep. He'd never met anyone who could sleep like that, and not look the least bothered.

"Stop staring at me," Claire said suddenly.

Leon blinked and looked up at the stars again, clearing his throat. "I wasn't," he lied.

Claire opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him. "Yes you were, I could tell," she said, smiling.

Leon finally sighed, turned off the radio, and looked at her with guilt. "How long have you been awake?" he asked.

Claire shrugged and looked up at the sky. "I didn't really sleep, I've been trying to ignore the situation," she said, sighing.

"Yeah..." said Leon, looking at the sky as well.

The truth was he'd ran out of gas about two hours ago, and neither of them had any reception on their cell phones. He didn't know where they were, and could see nothing but stars and trees. When he'd turned off the road to pull over, the car had rolled down a hill and finally stopped in the middle of nowhere, literally.

"I can hike back up and find the road, you know," said Leon.

Claire shook her head. "I'm not staying out here alone," she said, "never know what kind of crazy shit lives in woods like these."

Leon grinned and looked at her. "I never thought I'd see the day..." he said.

"What?" asked Claire suspiciously, glaring at him.

He laughed. "You, Claire Redfield, are scared," he said.

Claire leaned forward in the seat and smacked him on the arm. "No, I am NOT. I just don't like the idea of staying here while you get lost in the woods, and have to go find you," she said defensively.

"Then, why don't you go find the road?" asked Leon, still smirking.

"...I'd get lost too, dumbass, it's a bunch of trees hiding a bunch of other trees," she said.

"You always brag that your sense of direction is better than a GPS, which is why I never bought one, so how would you get lost? Unless, of course, you end up running off in blind fear," said Leon.

Claire stared at him, turned and hopped over the door. "Fine, I'll find your stupid road. And if I find any bad wolves or man-eating bears, I'll let them know where to find you," she said.

Leon nodded and leaned back in the seat. "Nah, bears don't live around here. I actually heard these parts were filled with the crawly types. Oh, a hunter back at that town said there were these bugs that grew to be over five feet long, and they planted egg-sacks all around the woods. The babies don't stay in the eggs long, only a day or so before about a thousand of them hatch from one egg only and crawl their way through the trees to find food, namely anything with blood, and-"  
"Shut up, Leon."

He grinned. "They can smell fear, and feel the vibration of a human's pulse when it accelerates from that fear, which is how they hunt."

"Seriously, stop it."

"Oh don't worry, you're not scared so it would take them at least twice as long to find you," he said.

Claire hopped back into the car and curled up in the seat, wrapping her arms around her knees. "Okay, you win, just stop already," she said.

Leon frowned. "I was kidding, there probably aren't even mosquitoes in these damn woods," he said.

Claire shook her head, looking over the side of the car. "Does the roof go up on this thing?" she asked.

"I tried, but it's stuck," said Leon.

"Nice. Well, I hope you're happy, Kennedy. I'm cold, freaked out, and your stupid car doesn't have a way of producing heat," she said.

"Yeah, I planned it all," replied Leon, smiling. He looked over to her, but she wasn't in a joking mood. "Okay fine, I'm sorry I got us stuck here, I'm sorry this car is a piece of shit, and I'm sorry I scared you with the bug story. Tell you what, if a bear attacks us, I'll jump into its mouth first so you get a laugh before you die," he said, smiling again.

Claire glared at him, but he saw a hint of a smile. "Deal," she said.

"Are you seriously that cold though?" asked Leon. Claire nodded, and he sighed. He climbed over the handbrake and slipped onto the passenger seat next to her.

"What are you doing?" asked Claire, trying to move away but stopped by the door.

Leon threw his arm around her shoulder and pulled her back. "Calm down, I'm just keeping you warm, that's all. Just try to sleep and once it's bright out we can find the road," he said.

Claire wanted to protest, but she really was freezing, and now terrified thanks to his insect story. "I don't think I can sleep, though," she said.

"So then look at the stars, it'll pass time I guess," said Leon. He looked up, and Claire could see in his eyes that he really meant nothing by it. He was keeping her warm, and seemed so cool about it considering how close they were. If she could get her heart to stop pounding, she might be able to relax.

Then, there was a noise.

"What the hell was that?" asked Claire, looking around.

"Sounded like a crash or something," said Leon. He was looking at the trees ahead, which were lit-up by the headlights. "It came from over there," he added.

"A bear?" asked Claire.

Leon shook his head, reaching into the glove compartment. He pulled out a flashlight and kept his attention to the trees. "Okay, I'll go check it out, you stay here and-"  
"No."

Leon sighed and looked at her. "There might be a road ahead, and someone could've crashed their car and need serious help," he said.

"No way."

"Claire, if you'd been driving around and crashed in the middle of nowhere, and say broke your leg, would you want someone to come help or would you rather they stay in their car and ignored you?" he asked.

"It could be something dangerous!" said Claire.

Leon sighed and pulled out a hunting knife from his glove compartment. He climbed back into his own seat then started over the door before Claire grabbed his arm. He looked back and gave her a smile. "I'll be back in no time," he said, but his smile faded when he noticed she wasn't even looking at him. "What is it?" he asked.

Claire was staring ahead at the trees, her face nearly grey in terror. "What...is that?" she asked.

Leon sank back into his seat and looked ahead. Between the trees, lit up by the headlights, was a face. It was a white face and looked like a person, only the blank expression reminded Leon of a sci-fi movie. Only the face was sticking out of the woods, and the light made the green eyes shiny brightly.

The face stared at them for nearly a minute before Leon realized something cold and shaky was squeezing his hand. He looked down and saw Claire's hand, and from the corner of her eye he could see her terrified face staring back at the stranger's. He took in a deep breath, and looked ahead again.

"Are you alright?" he called out.

The eyes blinked, and Leon felt Claire's grip tighten.

"We, uh, heard a weird noise. Are you hurt?" asked Leon.

The face tilted sideways, reminding Leon of that thing dogs do with their heads when they're confused, only the movement was nearly instant, like a robot.

"Are...you...hurt?" repeated Leon, carefully articulating each word. Claire's hand let go of his, and he looked over to her, puzzled.

She'd backed up against her door, and was now looking behind him, and when he looked he saw another face sticking out from between the trees. This one wasn't lit up, but it looked just like the other. "Leon," whispered Claire, barely able to get the name out.

Leon gulped, nodding. "It's okay," he said. He looked at the face, not ready to admit he was a little scared. "Maybe they crashed, and they're in shock," he said.

He looked back to Claire, and felt his heart skip a beat. There were two other faces only these were much closer, floating on either side of Claire's head. They were almost right next to her, but far back enough to not be seen in her peripherals. She saw the terror in his face, and he saw her lips tremble. "Don't...move..." he whispered to her.

She froze in place, staring right at Leon. She could tell something was behind her by the look of panic on his face, but she couldn't find herself to turn and look. Suddenly, from both sides, white faces started appearing in her vision, staring right at her. They moved so slowly, almost like she was the one falling backwards.

From the corner of his eye, Leon saw he'd set the hunting knife on the dashboard. Without breaking eye contact with Claire, he reached over slowly to get it. His hand accidentally hit the horn, which made him jump. He saw the two faces by Claire stare at the horn, then the sky, and then they pulled back into the trees. Leon turned and saw that the other two faces had gone as well. It seemed like the sound had scared them off, and he mentally slapped himself for not thinking about it before.

"Claire," he said, turning back quickly. She was gone. Leon was up on his knees on the seat, looking around. "Claire!" he yelled. He grabbed the knife and the flashlight, and hopped out of the car. "CLAIRE!" he yelled again, this time in panic. At this point even a scream would reassure him, but there was nothing.

He then heard another crash, sounding like it came from the same direction as the first. Leon stared into the trees, his heartbeat racing. He took slow, uncertain steps towards the front of the car. "Claire?" he called out, flashlight pointed ahead.


	2. Reality

**Reality**

Leon neared the trees, but jumped back when Claire suddenly ran out. She ran right into him, knocking them both to the ground. "Claire, what the-"  
"Don't!" Claire yelled, staring down at him. She rolled off and sat up with her back slamming against the front of the car, looking into the trees.

Leon got up and kneeled next to her, hand on her shoulder. "Claire, where'd you go? What's going on?" he asked. He shook her a bit, but she kept staring ahead. He couldn't see anything where she was looking, so he shook her again. "Claire!"

Claire blinked and looked at him, her face pale and lacking any expression but panic.

"What the hell happened?" asked Leon.

She shook her head. "Don't..." she said, looking back at the trees.

"Don't what? What's going on?" asked Leon, trying to understand. At first he'd thought someone was trying to mess with them, to scare them, which had worked perfectly. But now, he was extremely terrified as he watched his friend's behaviour. "What did they do?" he asked, his fear turning to anger as he thought of the many possibilities.

Claire shook her head, still staring ahead. "Don't," she said again.

Leon stepped in front of her and grabbed both of her arms, shaking her. "Don't what? Talk to me, will you?" he said. Her arms were freezing, but she wasn't shaking in the least. This scared Leon even more. "Claire?" he asked once more, in his most calming tone.

Claire blinked, looked at him, and shut her eyes. Leon felt her weight drop, but he caught her before she toppled over to the ground. He looked down at her, confused, and checked her pulse. She was still breathing, and the pulse seemed regular. He picked her up and stood, turning to look at the trees. "What the hell's going on..." he wondered, walking to the back of the car. He gently set Claire down on the back seat, and climbed into the driver's. He was definitely not going anywhere tonight, and could tell he'd only have to wait for a couple of hours before the sun came up. So, gripping his knife tightly, Leon waited.

"...up! Come on, kid, wake up!" said a voice, snapping Leon back from his short sleep.

"What?" he asked as he looked around. He was still sitting in the car, holding the knife, but it was very bright out. He quickly turned around, seeing Claire on the backseat, same as when he'd put her there. Then, he looked to his side. A man was standing by his door, smiling in relief.

"Finally, I've been yelling at you for five minutes!" said the man.

"Who are you?" asked Leon, still trying to piece things together. He didn't remember falling asleep.

"My name's John, I live in a cabin not too far away. My wife said she heard a car honk last night, figured I'd go check first thing in the morning. Lose your way, friend?" asked John.

Leon nodded, setting his knife down on the passenger seat. "We ran out of gas, rolled down the hill, and got stuck here...Did your wife hear anything else?" he asked.

John blinked. "Nope, just some crash and then a horn, which I was hoping was you. Need some gas?" he asked.

"She heard the crash? Was there anything weird?" asked Leon, panicking again.

"Hey buddy, calm down...did you bump your head when you rolled down the hill? And what happened to your friend?" asked John, turning his attention to Claire.

Leon looked at her again, sighing. "Something was out here, and I don't know what happened but I really need to get her home..." he said, his thoughts drifting as he noticed something odd on her neck. He leaned over the seat and put his hand under her chin, slightly moving her head sideways. Just behind her ear, he could see a fresh cut running down all the way to her shoulder. It didn't look deep, and there wasn't much blood on the car seat, but it was still a cut to the head which was never good.

"Well would you look at that...I think she needs a doctor, friend," said John. "I drive a tow-truck, and I'll happily give you a lift into town."

Leon looked at him and nodded. "Thanks John, that would really help actually," he said. "I'm Leon, and I'm really glad your wife has such a good hearing," he added.

John laughed. "So am I," he said. "Stay here, I'll be right back with the truck. Pulling you up that hill shouldn't be a problem." John turned and headed back through the woods, while Leon sat in the car. He looked back to Claire, worried. He wasn't sure how bad the situation was, but the more he thought about it the more he wondered if he was crazy. First, there was a crash, then strange faces, and now Claire was unconscious, cut, and had been acting really weird. The cut, he thought, might've been caused by a branch if she ran through the woods blindly, but he wasn't sure about the rest.

Leon climbed out of the car and opened the backdoor, sliding on the seat. He lifted Claire's head and sat there, setting it back down on his lap. "I'm really sorry," he said, suddenly hating his car. He looked up then looked out into the woods. "Hey, John!" he yelled. "Can you hear me?"

In a few seconds, John ran back. "Yeah, what is it?" he asked.

"I'll take that ride into town if you don't mind, but we can leave the car here. It's a piece of crap anyways," said Leon.

John blinked, looking at the car. "You'd just...leave it here? Someone might take it," he said. "It's a nice car."

Leon nodded. "I understand, and I really don't care. My priority right now is getting her checked out," he said.

For the first time since they'd met, John shot Leon a suspicious look. "Who is she, anyways?" he asked.

"Her name's Claire, she's a really close friend of mine. Man, I should've listened when she said the Jeep was better," said Leon.

"What were you two doing out here anyways?" asked John. He stepped aside while Leon got out of the car, carrying Claire.

"We're on vacation with some friends, and she really wanted to go for a long drive. She wanted to take our friend's Jeep, but I insisted on my 'classy' convertible. Now, I regret even going out," he said.

John nodded. "I have a phone in the car you can use, if there's anyone you need to contact," he said. He was walking through the woods, followed closely by Leon.

"Thanks a lot, John. You're a life saver," he said.

"Oh don't worry about it, nothing ever happens around here so I'm glad to finally have someone to help," said John. "Where are you from?"

"New York," said Leon, "we came here for a friend's wedding and had the week to just hang out and relax." _So much for relaxing,_ he thought.

John looked back and smiled. "I've been to New York...real crowded place," he said.

Leon couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, it takes awhile to get used to it. I like the quiet places, like this one," he said.

"Yeah, the smaller towns are always the best," said John. They reached a cabin, but John headed right for the parked truck on a dirt road. "I'd love for you to meet my wife, but we should get to town as soon as possible," he said.

Leon nodded. "I understand, and I'm sure she's a really nice person," he said. He put Claire on the backseat of the truck and climbed in, setting her head on his lap like before. John got in the driver's seat and looked back at Leon.

"Town's not too far off," he said. He handed a cell phone to Leon and started up the truck.

Leon looked at the phone and sighed. There was no question who he'd call, but he had to think of a way to explain what happened without causing much panic.

But then again, he'd be gone all night with Claire, and neither had a way to be contacted. No matter what he said, there would be panic, yelling, and Leon swore a volcano somewhere would become active. He dialled the number and waited patiently until someone picked up the line. "_Hello?_" asked the voice.

"Hey Chris, it's me," he said, instantly pulling the phone away from his ear.

"_LEON WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU TWO AND WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOUR PHONES?_" yelled Chris. John looked up into the rear-view mirror, but Leon nodded to him to ensure that everything was okay.

"Calm down, everything's...fine, I guess. The car ran out of gas, and we got lost in the woods and it was way too dark to find the road so we waited. Oh, and the cells have no reception here," he explained.

Chris was ready to yell again, but something must've clicked when he realized he was speaking to Leon. "_Leon, why did you call me? Where's Claire?"_ he asked.

Leon sighed. "She's kind of sleeping, it was a long night and she was too cold to sleep so she probably passed out sometime this morning," he lied.

"_Passed out? My ass, Leon, what the hell did you do last night?"_ asked Chris.

"We didn't do anything, we sat in the car and fell asleep," defended Leon. "Can you guys meet us at a town close-by called," he paused, looking up at John. "What's the town called?" he asked.

John smiled. "Pinecliff," he said.

Leon spoke into the phone. "Pinecliff, we're getting a ride there and have no other way back," he said.

Chris paused, which scared the shit out of Leon. _"Yeah, we'll be there. Are you meeting us at a gas stop?"_ he asked.

"No, the hospital," said Leon, knowing there was no way to boycott this.

"_HOSPITAL? What the hell happened?"_ panicked Chris. There was a loud noise from his end, and then someone sighed into the phone. "_Leon?"_ asked Jill's voice.

"Oh thank God. Jill, can you convince Chris to meet us at the hospital in Pinecliff without a gun? I don't want him to kill me before I can explain what happened," he said.

Jill laughed. "_Convince, no, but I can tell him to. We'll be there as fast as we can, Leon, but I sure hope you have a good explanation,"_ she said.

Leon loved Jill. She was the only one who could steal authority from Chris and get away with it, and probably the only thing keeping him alive today. "I do, and thanks a lot," he said. He hung up and handed the phone back to John.

"Everything okay? That guy sounded pretty mad," he asked, glancing into the mirror.

Leon sighed. "Nothing happened, but I spent the night out with his little sister," he said.

John nodded, understanding the situation instantly. "At least you'll be surrounded by doctors," he said, smiling. Leon smiled back, looking down at Claire. He had to think of what to tell Chris, but he really wished he knew himself what happened in the woods. He'd go into details and get accused of being crazy, but hopefully Claire would wake up and help him explain.

Hopefully Claire would wake up and remember.

Hopefully Claire would wake up...


	3. Beginning

**Beginning**

Leon dragged his feet as he walked down the hospital hall. He'd been sent down to the lobby for coffee while Chris took care of the paperwork, but ended up taking over an hour. He'd been sitting in the lobby, his nerves nearly driving him insane, and after his fourth cup of coffee he decided to order for the others and head back up.

He reached the elevators and hit the button to go up, sighing. He looked to the side and saw a kid standing there, staring at him. "Um, hi," he said.

The kid smiled. "Hi. My name's Billy," he said.

Leon nodded, looking back to the elevators. "Nice meeting you, I guess," he said.

"You don't look sick," said Billy.

"I'm not," he said.

"So why are you here then?" asked the boy.

Leon sighed and looked back down to him, forcing a smile. "My friend got hurt last night, so I brought her here to get checked," he said.

Billy nodded. "How did she get hurt?" he asked.

_Nosy little..._ thought Leon. He sighed again. "We got lost in the woods, and she got cut on a tree. It's not that bad," he said.

The boy frowned. "Cut where?" he asked.

"Why are you so interested?" asked Leon, trying not to sound too irritated.

"Was it behind the ear?" asked Billy.

Leon looked at him, eyes wide. "Yeah, actually...How-"  
"Did it look like this?" asked Billy, turning his head and pointing to his ear. There was a long cut that went from the top of the ear to his neck, just like Claire's.

Leon couldn't even think straight. "How did you get that?"

Billy looked back to the elevator, his eyes looking lost into space. "From the strangers," he said.

Now, Leon was sure it wasn't a coincidence. "What strangers?" he asked.

"The white faces...woods..." said Billy, trailing off. He was staring at the doors, seemingly spaced out.

Leon leaned forward and put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Billy?" he asked.

Billy flinched and backed away from him. "Don't!" he yelled. He turned and ran down the hallway.

Leon was about to follow him, but the elevator doors opened. He watched Billy turn the corner and sighed, stepping into the elevator and pressing the button to Claire's floor. He took a deep breath, and started thinking again. The boy had reacted

The doors opened up, and Leon stepped out sighing again. He was starting to regret the entire trip, and made a note to mention going home to Chris and Jill

As he neared Claire's room, he saw Jill and Chris sitting on the waiting chairs outside the door. He walked over and handed the coffees over. "Sorry I took so long, guys. Why are you sitting out here?" he asked.

Chris looked up, sighing. He grabbed the coffees and gave one to Jill. "Claire's insisting she's fine, and wanted to change so she kicked us out. Should I even bother asking what happened last night?" he asked, raising a brow.

Leon felt relieved to hear she'd woken up. "The car ran out of gas, and when I pulled over we went over some random cliff and rolled down until the car finally stopped in the middle of some woods," said Leon.

Jill sipped her coffee while Chris took a deep breath. It was a bit entertaining to see him try to keep calm. "And then what happened?" he asked.

Leon shook his head. "Nothing, we just sat there listening to music and Claire passed out," he said.

"Uh huh...and how did she get cut?" asked Chris. Jill sipped her coffee, and looked back to Leon, waiting for the response.

"Well, there was a noise and we went to check it out. It got cold so we ran back to the car, and I think a branch cut her," said Leon.

"And she didn't hit her head or anything?" asked Chris.

Leon shook his head. "Not that I recall...why?" he asked.

Chris sighed. "She said she didn't remember anything, and the doctors thought it might've been short-term amnesia, but turns out it might be some repression thing," he said.

Jill got up. "Which means something happened and her brain's holding it back from her memory," she said.

Leon nodded. "I get it...and that could make sense, if something had actually happened. But I'm telling you, it didn't," he said.

Just then, the door opened and Claire walked out. She was wearing her own clothes, looked exhausted, and had a bandage behind her ear, going down to the neck. She let the door close and noticed everyone was staring at her. "What?" she asked.

"How are you feeling?" asked Leon.

Claire shrugged. "Fine I guess," she said. "You?"

Leon blinked. "I'm fine...hey, can we talk for a second?" he asked.

Jill grinned and dragged Chris away, giving the two some privacy.

Leon watched them turn the corner, possibly towards the vending machines, and sighed. He looked at Claire, forcing a smile. "Well I'm glad to see you're better," he said.

"Yeah," said Claire.

Leon sat down, relieved to see her do the same. "So, you don't remember what happened?" he asked.

Claire nodded. "I do..." she said.

"Then why did you tell your brother that you didn't? They think you have amnesia," he said.

"I know," said Claire.

Leon frowned. "Okay, I need some full sentences here. Why didn't you explain to him what happened?" he asked.

Claire stared at her shoes. "I don't even know what happened," she said.

"But you said that you remember!" said Leon.

"I know, but I don't know exactly what it is I remember...It seems so weird and stupid, and if I told Chris he'd probably laugh at me," said Claire.

Leon sighed. "Yeah, he probably would..." he said. "But I know we're not crazy, 'cause there's a kid in here that had the same cut as you, and he was saying things that sounded just like what we saw."

Claire looked up instantly. "A kid?" she asked.

"Yeah, he was downstairs...I really wish he hadn't run off like he did, I had so many questions for him," said Leon.

Claire grabbed his arm. "We have to go find him!" she said.

Leon shook his head. "This is a big hospital, and I'm pretty sure Chris wants to take you back to the hotel to rest," he said.

"I don't need any rest, I need some fucking answers!" said Claire, standing up.

Before Leon could try calming her down, Chris and Jill turned the corner and walked back over. "Hey, what's going on?" asked Chris.

Claire looked at him, then back down. "Nothing," she said.

Chris sighed and walked over to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "Come on, let's get you back," he said. Claire nodded, glancing over to Leon before following her brother down the hall.

Jill sat down next to Leon, and waited until the siblings turned the corner before clearing her throat. "Okay dude, tell me what happened," she said.

Leon blinked. "I already told you guys the story, like, three times," he said.

"Yeah, but I don't believe 'nothing happened', like you said. Just tell me, I promise I won't tell Chris, and I won't judge either," said Jill, smiling.

"...Fine," said Leon. "Well first off the car broke down in the middle of the woods, like I said, but we didn't just fall asleep..."

Jill grinned. "Didn't think so," she said.

"No, Jill, it's not like that. We were sitting there with the music on, but then we heard a weird noise...kind of like a boom, and then it was quiet. I wanted to check it out, but Claire seemed kind of freaked out about the idea," he said.

Jill blinked. "What was it, a car accident?" she asked.

Leon shook his head. "It was like something crashing...I don't know, really. Point is I was about to go check it out, but these...faces...appeared in the headlights. I thought someone might've been hurt, so I tried asking them if they were okay..." he said.

Jill almost laughed. "Let me guess, they were drunk?" she asked.

"No! They never answered! They just stared at us, it was a little creepy," said Leon.

"You got scared by someone who just...stared?" asked Jill.

"Okay, if you're gonna be sceptical and sarcastic, I won't even bother..." said Leon, standing.

Jill took his hand and pulled him back down. "Okay I'm sorry! Please continue," she said.

Leon sighed and sat back down. "Okay...well, they kept staring at us, and they were coming from different directions. I thought they were really hurt until two of them were getting closer and closer to Claire. I went to get the knife to scare them away, but instead I accidentally hit the horn and they ran off," he said. Jill was nodding, so Leon continued. "When I turned to look at Claire, she was gone."

Jill blinked. "What do you mean, gone? She passed out?" she asked.

He shook his head. "She wasn't in the car, or anywhere near it. I went out calling for her, and she randomly ran out of the woods looking terrified and acting really weird," he said. He took in a deep breath, the scene still fresh in his mind.

Jill stood up. "This doesn't really make sense, Leon," she said.  
He stood as well. "I know! But it's what happened, I swear! She passed out right after that, and I put her in the car. I fell asleep at some point, and John woke me up. That's only when I realized she'd gotten cut," he said.

"Well what we're trying to figure out is how she got cut...the doctor said it wasn't from a tree branch," said Jill.

Leon nodded. "Didn't think so, but I don't know what else it could be. Wanna hear the weirdest part?" he asked. He looked into Jill's eyes and could tell she believed him, somehow.

"What's the weirdest part?" she asked, intrigued.

"When I was coming back up with the coffee, I had a conversation with some kid staying here...he'd seen the same things we had, and has the same cut as Claire," he said. "He ran off before I could ask him about it, and when I mentioned it to Claire she freaked out."

Jill thought a bit then nodded. "We should find that kid," she said.

"His name's Billy, and he was wearing hospital pyjamas so I bet he's in the children's wing," said Leon.

"Okay, let's head there now," said Jill. She took her phone out and started typing a message. "I'll let Chris know to go ahead, we'll take a cab back later," she said.

They headed down to the children's wing and went straight to the receptionist. Leon asked for a boy named Billy, and gave a slight description. Before the nurse began her search, she asked how they were related to the boy. Leon came up with a lie about how he'd met the boy downstairs and they'd talked about comic books for a bit, and the boy had asked him to come up and play video games with him.

The nurse bought the story, which made Jill laugh, and started searching for the boy's name in the computer.

"I'm sorry, but we don't have a boy named Billy in this hospital," said the nurse.

Leon blinked. "That's impossible; I was just talking to him. Maybe he's not staying then, maybe he was just in temporarily and got sent home?" he asked.

The nurse stared at her computer screen. "No, we don't have any patient named Billy registered. Even if he was in here for an emergency, he'd be listed somewhere. I'm sorry, maybe you were at a different hospital," she said.

Jill looked at Leon, now completely believing his story. They thanked the nurse and walked back towards the elevator, keeping silent. Once they were in and heading down to the lobby, Jill spoke up. "Okay, so a kid went through the same thing Claire did, wouldn't talk about it, and ran off before you could ask...and now he's apparently not even real?" she asked.

Leon nodded. "I don't understand," he said.

Jill sighed. "Unless he just...disappeared," she said.

"Think it could be related to the strangers and the cut?" asked Leon.

"I hope not...cause if it is, Claire's in trouble," said Jill.


End file.
